Tag: slowdive

In July of 2016, the Nagoya Shoegazer Expo was held at KD Japon and Daytrip, two venues in Nagoya’s Tsurumai area that have more or less been the stage for the emergence of the local shoegaze scene over the last few years.

In July of 2016, the Nagoya Shoegazer Expo was held at KD Japon and Daytrip, two venues in Nagoya’s Tsurumai area that have more or less been the stage for the emergence of the local shoegaze scene over the last few years. To be honest, it wasn’t much of a shoegaze event at all, but more of an alternative rock showcase curated by a fan of the genre. With the exception of mishca and Aysula, many of Nagoya’s more established shoegaze representatives were conspicuously absent from the lineup. Little-known local newcomer softsurf was buried on the bill, scheduled to take the stage at 3:30 in the afternoon at the Monday event.

It’s been a hell of a year since that event for softsurf. They put out a 2-track demo single and absolutely packed the house at our Daydream event in Nagoya. They stepped up their gigging schedule and earlier this year supported NIGHTS’ Jenna Fournier on her Japan tour. They established themselves as one of the brightest new acts in Japan, and boast one of the best live shows I’ve seen in a long time. And today softsurf has released its debut EP, “Into the Dream”.

I’m not the biggest fan of band comparisons, and I don’t really use them a whole lot when writing reviews. But in softsurf’s case, given the overall tone of the Japanese shoegaze scene, it’s hard not to at least mention similarities to Slowdive – something that hasn’t really been done since Pastel Blue called it quits years ago. You find a whole lot of Ride, Pale Saints, and My Bloody Valentine influence in Japan, but softsurf goes agains the grain, opting to bury melodies deep within hazy, billowy guitars. You get a sense of it from the single they released, but the depth of softsurf’s sound absolutely blows you away when you see them on stage. It’s impossible for a recording to capture the intensity and fill space like a live performance, but “Into the Dream” is as good a representation as one could hope for.

Both of the tracks released on softsurf’s first demo, “Blue Swirl” and “Beautiful Day” appear on the EP in much more beefed-up forms. There’s not much to be said that I haven’t already mentioned in previous reviews, other than the fact that the quality is, expectedly, much-improved. The remaining three tracks are all new. “Another Garden” is a sweet, whimsical dream pop track that follows more of the Japanese shoegaze model with its more prominent melodies. It’s one of the catchier tunes on “Into the Dream”, injecting a bit more bounce into an EP that is otherwise based around texture-building.

For me, the real strength of “Into the Dream” lies in the other two new tracks. “Rainy Moon” sits smack in the middle of the five track EP and starts off with a gentle, lulling verse, crescendoing at points, but not quite fully taking off. That is until about halfway through when the song explodes into a mass of big swirling guitars. Frontwoman Yuki Udono’s vocals really shine on “Rainy Moon”, going from sweet and soft to powerful, matching each phase of the song. It’s an intense track, and also my personal favorite in any softsurf live set.

If the first four tracks don’t sell you on the Slowdive comp, the finale, “Dawn of the Sun”, most definitely will. There isn’t much in the way of subtle developments in this song, as it kicks right off with big screaming guitars. There’s a heavy “When the Sun Hits” vibe, the way the song takes off and carries you through a thick atmosphere of layered guitars and reverb-soaked male-female twin vocals. It’s not the most original of their tracks, but it’s a beast of a song that you just sort of get lost in.

There’s a good reason this was my most anticipated release of the year, and softsurf, with the help of some fine production work, delivered. Softsurf has announced itself as one of Japan’s finest shoegaze bands, coming a long way since last year’s Nagoya Shoegaze Expo. You can see them live at this year’s Daydream events in Kyoto, Nagoya, and Tokyo. And folks interested in buying “Into the Dream” can do so via Nagoya’s File Under Records (see the link and directions below).

Directions for overseas customers: Send an e-mail with the name of the title you would like to purchase to file-under.rec@nifty.com. After confirming the total with shipping, payment can be made via PayPal.

So the big news last week was the release of Slowdive’s self-titled record – their first album in 22 years. The Japanese version of the album comes with the much sought-after bonus track “30th june”, and while I’ve yet to make my way through the album and put together a review of the track itself, I figured I would at least post the lyrics. If you’re interested in purchasing the Japanese release, you can do so here.

So the big news last week was the release of Slowdive’s self-titled record – their first album in 22 years. The Japanese version of the album comes with the much sought-after bonus track “30th june”, and while I’ve yet to make my way through the album and put together a review of the track itself, I figured I would at least post the lyrics. If you’re interested in purchasing the Japanese release, you can do so here or here.

Late last year, Thud was a little-known band from Hong Kong whose single “Lime” had drawn intrigue from just about every shoegaze fan who came across it on social media. On the back of their first single, the band’s popularity had continued to grow and with it the demand for more music. A second track “Venture” was released, which was an encouraging sign that perhaps a proper release was in the works. Fast forward to June and the exciting news that they will, in fact, be releasing an EP.

Late last year, Thud was a little-known band from Hong Kong whose single “Lime” had drawn intrigue from just about every shoegaze fan who came across it on social media. On the back of their first single, the band’s popularity had continued to grow and with it the demand for more music. Early this year a second track “Venture” was released, which was an encouraging sign that perhaps a proper release was in the works. Fast forward to June and the exciting news that they will, in fact, be releasing an EP.

Floret will be the maiden release for both Thud and Hong Kong-based label Records For Children. The EP will feature four tracks from the quartet, whose sound features an extremely appealing marriage of ‘classic’ shoegaze guitar textures and blanketed atmospheric synths. Shades of Slowdive and M83 – whose influence becomes especially apparent on the charmingly woozy “Venture” – can be heard throughout Floret, and though comparisons can be made to any number of influential shoegaze/dream pop outfits, Thud’s debut is an imaginative display of a sound that they’ve uniquely constructed as their own. The whirring instrumental blend is entrancing, the rhythm and synth pop melodies danceable from start to finish, and the breathy female vocals are a thing of beauty. Simply put, it’s a fantastic EP with no discernible flaws, that should be among the year’s best when all is said and done. As an added bonus, the fifth track on the CD is a chilled out remix of “Lime” done by Max Bloom of Yuck, for whom Thud opened in Hong Kong this year.

In addition to a digital release, physical CDs will go on sale at the EP Release Show in Hong Kong on June 30th. To follow news and updates regarding this release and future releases follow Thud and Records for Children on Facebook.

このEPは6月30日にデジタルリリースされ、当日行われるリリースパーティではCDも販売されるそうである。今後の情報はThudとRecords For Childrenのフェイスブックで発表されますので、是非フォローして下さい。